1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:06,280 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:10,920 Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:14,880 Speaker 1: show that proves there's more than one way to make history. 4 00:00:15,800 --> 00:00:19,560 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Lucier, and today we're talking about the first 5 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:24,639 Speaker 1: person to experience the mind bending effects of LSD, otherwise 6 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:28,520 Speaker 1: known as acid. The user in question was a thirty 7 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:31,520 Speaker 1: two year old chemist who thought he had invented a 8 00:00:31,560 --> 00:00:36,239 Speaker 1: new medicine for improving blood circulation, only to realize that 9 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:39,840 Speaker 1: wasn't the case in one of the most upsetting ways possible. 10 00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:44,240 Speaker 1: As a warning, today's episode includes descriptions of drug use 11 00:00:44,440 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: and may not be appropriate for younger listeners. The day 12 00:00:53,120 --> 00:00:58,560 Speaker 1: was April nineteenth, nineteen forty three. Swiss chemist Albert Hoffmann 13 00:00:58,720 --> 00:01:02,680 Speaker 1: discovered the psychic effect of LSD while bike riding home 14 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:06,040 Speaker 1: from his lab. It was the first time Hoffman had 15 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:11,280 Speaker 1: intentionally ingested lysergic acid diethylamide, a new substance that he 16 00:01:11,319 --> 00:01:15,200 Speaker 1: had stumbled upon five years earlier. The young chemist was 17 00:01:15,319 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 1: unaware of the full effects of his creation, but he 18 00:01:18,600 --> 00:01:22,880 Speaker 1: was about to find them out firsthand. Albert Hoffman first 19 00:01:22,920 --> 00:01:26,880 Speaker 1: synthesized LSD in nineteen thirty eight while working in the 20 00:01:26,880 --> 00:01:32,400 Speaker 1: pharmaceutical research and development department at Sandoz Laboratories. The Swiss 21 00:01:32,440 --> 00:01:35,440 Speaker 1: company had made a name for itself in the chemical sector, 22 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:39,040 Speaker 1: producing a variety of dyes as well as sacharin, an 23 00:01:39,120 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 1: artificial sweetener. Hoffman's job was to experiment with medicinal plants 24 00:01:43,880 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 1: in order to identify, purify, and synthesize their active compounds 25 00:01:48,720 --> 00:01:52,040 Speaker 1: for use in pharmaceuticals. The main focus of his work 26 00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:55,680 Speaker 1: in the late nineteen thirties was ergot, a fungus that 27 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:58,880 Speaker 1: grows on rye and that can be poisonous when consumed 28 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:02,480 Speaker 1: in its natural form. Researchers had determined that all of 29 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:07,600 Speaker 1: the active compounds in ergot shared a common nucleus, lycurgic acid. 30 00:02:08,120 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 1: Hoffmann figured out a way to synthetically recreate that crucial chemical, 31 00:02:12,639 --> 00:02:15,640 Speaker 1: and in a series of experiments, he began combining it 32 00:02:15,720 --> 00:02:19,280 Speaker 1: with various other organic molecules in hopes of creating a 33 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 1: new medically useful compound. The twenty fifth attempt in that 34 00:02:23,800 --> 00:02:27,880 Speaker 1: series was a combination of lysergic acid and diethylamine, a 35 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:32,880 Speaker 1: derivative of ammonia. Its laboratory name was LSD twenty five, 36 00:02:33,200 --> 00:02:36,680 Speaker 1: and Hoffmann hoped it would prove effective as an analeptic, 37 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:42,440 Speaker 1: a type of medicine used to stimulate circulation and respiration. Unfortunately, 38 00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:46,919 Speaker 1: the pharmacologists and physicians at Sandoz didn't think the compound 39 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,200 Speaker 1: showed much promise. Testing was discontinued shortly after it started, 40 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:56,200 Speaker 1: and LSD twenty five was shelved indefinitely. Hoffmann carried on 41 00:02:56,320 --> 00:02:59,400 Speaker 1: with his ergot research for the next five years, but 42 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:03,240 Speaker 1: for some reason he couldn't let go of LSD twenty five. 43 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:06,280 Speaker 1: He had a feeling, which he later described as a 44 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: quote peculiar presentiment, that the substance may have other properties 45 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:14,560 Speaker 1: that had gone overlooked during initial testing. It was only 46 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:16,800 Speaker 1: a hunch, but it was enough to convince him to 47 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:20,480 Speaker 1: synthesize a new batch of LSD twenty five, which he 48 00:03:20,560 --> 00:03:25,520 Speaker 1: did on Friday, April sixteenth, nineteen forty three. Hoffman later 49 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:28,960 Speaker 1: remarked on that pivotal day in his lab, saying, quote 50 00:03:29,160 --> 00:03:33,680 Speaker 1: I did not choose LSD, LSD found and called me. 51 00:03:34,160 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: Whether you believe that somewhat mystic take or not, it 52 00:03:37,720 --> 00:03:41,800 Speaker 1: is true that Hoffman didn't intend to ingest LSD twenty 53 00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:45,600 Speaker 1: five on April sixteenth. However, while he was making it, 54 00:03:45,760 --> 00:03:49,400 Speaker 1: he inadvertently absorbed a small amount of the substance through 55 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,480 Speaker 1: the skin of his fingertips. At the time, he didn't 56 00:03:52,520 --> 00:03:54,920 Speaker 1: even know it had happened. All he knew was that 57 00:03:54,960 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: he suddenly felt very strange and very dizzy. He decided 58 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: to go home early, and when he returned to the 59 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:03,520 Speaker 1: lab the following Monday, he wrote a letter to his 60 00:04:03,600 --> 00:04:07,120 Speaker 1: boss explaining what had happened. At home. I lay down, 61 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:11,280 Speaker 1: he wrote, and sank into a not unpleasant intoxicated like 62 00:04:11,320 --> 00:04:17,080 Speaker 1: condition characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination. In a dreamlike state, 63 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:22,400 Speaker 1: with eyes closed, I perceived an uninterrupted stream of fantastic pictures, 64 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:28,000 Speaker 1: extraordinary shapes with intense kaleidoscopic play of colors. Hoffman was 65 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 1: intrigued by his experience, but he still wasn't sure what 66 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:34,720 Speaker 1: had caused it. He had performed multiple experiments in the 67 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:37,840 Speaker 1: lab that day and had taken all the usual precautions. 68 00:04:38,279 --> 00:04:41,240 Speaker 1: He repeated a few of those tasks on April nineteenth, 69 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:44,159 Speaker 1: but none of them brought on the same effect. That's 70 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:46,240 Speaker 1: when it dawned on him that he may have been 71 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:49,719 Speaker 1: exposed to a trace amount of LSD twenty five, and 72 00:04:49,760 --> 00:04:53,159 Speaker 1: that it might have hallucinogenic properties that he had never 73 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:57,280 Speaker 1: even considered. With that prospect in mind, Hoffman decided to 74 00:04:57,279 --> 00:05:01,440 Speaker 1: do something incredibly reckless. At four twenty in the afternoon, 75 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:05,640 Speaker 1: he dissolved two hundred and fifty micrograms of LSD twenty 76 00:05:05,680 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 1: five in water and then drank it. He took what 77 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:11,880 Speaker 1: he thought was a small amount, but it turned out 78 00:05:11,920 --> 00:05:15,839 Speaker 1: to be a pretty sizable dose. The effects came on quickly, 79 00:05:16,080 --> 00:05:18,719 Speaker 1: and though Hoffman intended to record what he was feeling 80 00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:22,040 Speaker 1: throughout the experience, his final journal entry of the day 81 00:05:22,279 --> 00:05:25,600 Speaker 1: was less than an hour after ingesting the drug. It said, 82 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:32,960 Speaker 1: quote beginning dizziness, feeling of anxiety, visual distortions, symptoms of paralysis, 83 00:05:33,520 --> 00:05:38,279 Speaker 1: desire to laugh. In his nineteen eighty autobiography LSD My 84 00:05:38,440 --> 00:05:41,760 Speaker 1: Problem Child, Hoffman noted how difficult it had been to 85 00:05:41,839 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: maintain his focus during that first trip. I was able 86 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:48,479 Speaker 1: to write the last words only with great effort, he said, 87 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:52,919 Speaker 1: I had to struggle to speak intelligibly. Hoffman had only 88 00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:56,839 Speaker 1: informed one other person at Sandoze of his experiment that day, 89 00:05:57,080 --> 00:06:00,159 Speaker 1: a lab assistant who graciously agreed to escort Hoffman and 90 00:06:00,240 --> 00:06:02,960 Speaker 1: home once the full effects of the drug had taken hold. 91 00:06:03,720 --> 00:06:06,760 Speaker 1: That task wasn't as easy as you might imagine, though, 92 00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: As the Second World War was still raging in nineteen 93 00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:13,720 Speaker 1: forty three, personal cars had been banned from the road 94 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:17,359 Speaker 1: due to wartime vehicle restrictions, meaning that Hoffman and his 95 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:20,520 Speaker 1: assistant would have to ride their bikes home. It was 96 00:06:20,640 --> 00:06:24,479 Speaker 1: during that infamous bike ride, shortly after six pm, that 97 00:06:24,560 --> 00:06:29,039 Speaker 1: Hoffman experienced the peak intensity of LSD. The chemist later 98 00:06:29,120 --> 00:06:33,720 Speaker 1: recounted that harrowing journey and his memoir, writing quote, everything 99 00:06:33,800 --> 00:06:37,280 Speaker 1: in my field division wavered and was distorted, as if 100 00:06:37,320 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 1: seen in a curved mirror. I also had the sensation 101 00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:44,480 Speaker 1: of being unable to move from the spot. Nevertheless, my 102 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,840 Speaker 1: assistant later told me that we had traveled very rapidly. 103 00:06:48,520 --> 00:06:51,520 Speaker 1: Finally we arrived at home safe and sound, and I 104 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:55,160 Speaker 1: was just barely capable of asking my companion to summon 105 00:06:55,200 --> 00:06:59,599 Speaker 1: our family doctor and request milk from the neighbors. Hoffman 106 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: had no idea what to expect over the next several hours, 107 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:07,160 Speaker 1: and that uncertainty terrified him like nothing else. For all, 108 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,080 Speaker 1: he knew the potent drug he had ingested might have 109 00:07:10,200 --> 00:07:14,440 Speaker 1: permanently damaged his psyche. He started worrying about its toxic 110 00:07:14,520 --> 00:07:18,360 Speaker 1: qualities as well, fearing that he may have accidentally poisoned himself, 111 00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:21,560 Speaker 1: possibly to the point of dying. It was that last 112 00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:24,560 Speaker 1: concern that led him to ask for milk from his neighbor, 113 00:07:24,760 --> 00:07:28,360 Speaker 1: as the antioxidants in milk can sometimes relieve the symptoms 114 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:32,400 Speaker 1: of toxic substances. Hoffmann did eventually get his hands on 115 00:07:32,440 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 1: some milk that evening, but by then he was so 116 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:37,360 Speaker 1: deep in the throes of the drug that it did 117 00:07:37,400 --> 00:07:40,520 Speaker 1: him no good, and even the experience of receiving it 118 00:07:40,560 --> 00:07:44,440 Speaker 1: filled him with dread. The dizziness and sensation of fainting 119 00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:47,600 Speaker 1: became so strong at times, he wrote that I could 120 00:07:47,680 --> 00:07:50,680 Speaker 1: no longer hold myself erect and had to lie down 121 00:07:50,760 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 1: on a sofa. Everything in the room spun around, and 122 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:59,080 Speaker 1: the familiar objects and pieces of furniture assumed grotesque, threatening forms. 123 00:07:59,360 --> 00:08:02,480 Speaker 1: They were in con continuous motion, animated as if driven 124 00:08:02,560 --> 00:08:05,920 Speaker 1: by an inner relentlessness. The lady next door, whom I 125 00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:09,800 Speaker 1: scarcely recognized, brought me milk. In the course of the evening, 126 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:13,000 Speaker 1: I drank more than two leaders. She was no longer 127 00:08:13,160 --> 00:08:16,960 Speaker 1: missus r, but rather a malevolent, insidious witch with a 128 00:08:17,000 --> 00:08:21,000 Speaker 1: colored mask. Every exertion of my will every attempt to 129 00:08:21,040 --> 00:08:23,720 Speaker 1: put an end to the disintegration of the outer world 130 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:26,440 Speaker 1: and the disillusion of my ego seemed to be a 131 00:08:26,480 --> 00:08:29,920 Speaker 1: wasted effort. Hoffman was in the midst of the world's 132 00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:33,560 Speaker 1: first bad acid trip, but he wasn't dying. In fact, 133 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:37,000 Speaker 1: when his doctor arrived, all of his vital signs were normal. 134 00:08:37,280 --> 00:08:39,680 Speaker 1: The only evidence that the chemist was out of sorts 135 00:08:39,720 --> 00:08:43,480 Speaker 1: at all were his eyes, which were extremely dilated. Once 136 00:08:43,480 --> 00:08:45,960 Speaker 1: he'd been given a clean bill of health, though, Hoffman 137 00:08:46,040 --> 00:08:49,480 Speaker 1: was able to relax and actually enjoy his experience, As 138 00:08:49,520 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 1: he later described it quote, the horror softened and gave 139 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:56,360 Speaker 1: way to a feeling of good fortune and gratitude. The 140 00:08:56,440 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 1: more normal perceptions and thoughts returned, and I became more 141 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:04,199 Speaker 1: confident that the danger of insanity was conclusively passed. Now, 142 00:09:04,320 --> 00:09:07,520 Speaker 1: little by little, I could begin to enjoy the unprecedented 143 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:11,439 Speaker 1: colors and plays of shapes that persisted behind my closed eyes. 144 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:17,800 Speaker 1: Kaleidoscopic fantastic images surged in on me, alternating variegated opening 145 00:09:17,840 --> 00:09:21,840 Speaker 1: and then closing themselves in circles and spirals, exploding in 146 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:27,040 Speaker 1: colored fountains, rearranging and hybridizing themselves in constant flux. It 147 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:31,400 Speaker 1: was particularly remarkable how every acoustic perception, such as the 148 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:34,720 Speaker 1: sound of a door handle or a passing automobile, became 149 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:40,439 Speaker 1: transformed into optical perceptions. Every sound generated a vividly changing 150 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:43,880 Speaker 1: image with its own consistent form and color. By the 151 00:09:43,920 --> 00:09:47,120 Speaker 1: time Hoffman's wife got home that evening, her husband was 152 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:49,920 Speaker 1: able to speak coherently about what had happened to him, 153 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:52,920 Speaker 1: and the following morning he woke feeling better than he 154 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:55,840 Speaker 1: had in years. He noted the change in his journal, 155 00:09:55,920 --> 00:09:59,560 Speaker 1: writing quote, everything glistened and sparkled in a fresh light. 156 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:02,160 Speaker 1: The w the world was as if newly created. All 157 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:06,000 Speaker 1: my senses vibrated in a condition of highest sensitivity, which 158 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:09,640 Speaker 1: persisted for the entire day. It was clear that Hoffmann 159 00:10:09,679 --> 00:10:12,760 Speaker 1: had made an amazing discovery, and it wasn't long before 160 00:10:12,840 --> 00:10:18,320 Speaker 1: Sando's Pharmaceuticals began promoting LSD as a treatment for psychiatric disorders. 161 00:10:18,720 --> 00:10:21,960 Speaker 1: It was marketed under the trade name Delicid, and for 162 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:24,880 Speaker 1: a brief time, it was a popular treatment used in 163 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:29,319 Speaker 1: conjunction with psychoanalysis. There were numerous scientific studies of the 164 00:10:29,360 --> 00:10:33,280 Speaker 1: drug's therapeutic effects, but it was within the American counterculture 165 00:10:33,360 --> 00:10:37,199 Speaker 1: that LSD found its strongest foothold from the beat generation 166 00:10:37,440 --> 00:10:43,640 Speaker 1: to the Hippies, LSD or acid was widely embraced among artists, writers, actors, 167 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:49,040 Speaker 1: and rebellious teens. Psychology professor and activist Timothy Leary encouraged 168 00:10:49,120 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 1: mainstream consumption of the drug in the nineteen sixties and seventies, 169 00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:56,720 Speaker 1: believing that LSD could expand the consciousness of any person 170 00:10:56,720 --> 00:10:59,520 Speaker 1: who took it. Of course, by then, the drug had 171 00:10:59,520 --> 00:11:03,640 Speaker 1: gained an nasty reputation for the bad trips it sometimes caused, 172 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:06,600 Speaker 1: and also for encouraging what many considered to be the 173 00:11:06,640 --> 00:11:11,440 Speaker 1: breakdown of societal norms. As a result, in nineteen sixty six, 174 00:11:11,760 --> 00:11:15,240 Speaker 1: New York and California made it a crime to possess LSD, 175 00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:19,240 Speaker 1: and the US government followed suit four years later. As 176 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:22,840 Speaker 1: you might imagine, Albert Hoffman was distraught to see his 177 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:27,400 Speaker 1: discovery forced underground by prohibition. His early encounters with the 178 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:30,120 Speaker 1: drug had convinced him that LSD would be a major 179 00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:34,720 Speaker 1: benefit to the fields of pharmacology, neurology, and psychiatry. He 180 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:38,440 Speaker 1: never imagined LSD would catch on as a recreational drug, 181 00:11:38,840 --> 00:11:42,840 Speaker 1: probably because his initial experiences were so night maarish that 182 00:11:42,880 --> 00:11:45,360 Speaker 1: it was hard to imagine anyone taking it for fun. 183 00:11:45,760 --> 00:11:49,400 Speaker 1: Hoffman condemned the casual use of the drug, arguing that 184 00:11:49,400 --> 00:11:52,960 Speaker 1: those who abused it were failing to recognize its true purpose. 185 00:11:53,360 --> 00:11:56,320 Speaker 1: He still believed LSD could be a useful treatment for 186 00:11:56,400 --> 00:11:59,160 Speaker 1: psychological disorders, but he came to view it as a 187 00:11:59,160 --> 00:12:03,040 Speaker 1: tool for personal growth as well, calling the substance quote 188 00:12:03,360 --> 00:12:07,600 Speaker 1: medicine for the soul. Albert Hoffman continued to advocate for 189 00:12:07,640 --> 00:12:10,440 Speaker 1: those dual uses for the rest of his life, but 190 00:12:10,559 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 1: the stigma surrounding LSD prevented its widespread acceptance. That said, 191 00:12:15,559 --> 00:12:20,079 Speaker 1: his pioneering work still found many admirers in the academic community. 192 00:12:20,320 --> 00:12:23,719 Speaker 1: In nineteen eighty five, for example, a professor of educational 193 00:12:23,760 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 1: psychology named Thomas B. Roberts kicked off a now annual 194 00:12:27,720 --> 00:12:32,079 Speaker 1: celebration of Hoffman's fateful bike ride. It started out as 195 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:35,319 Speaker 1: just a private party for his fellow educators and scientists, 196 00:12:35,600 --> 00:12:39,160 Speaker 1: but his word spread other similar events began popping up 197 00:12:39,200 --> 00:12:44,080 Speaker 1: around the globe. Today, psychedelic enthusiasts and fans of Hoffman's 198 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:49,240 Speaker 1: work commemorate each April nineteenth as Bicycle Day. Dropping acid 199 00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:52,680 Speaker 1: is thankfully not a requirement to partake in the festivities, 200 00:12:52,800 --> 00:12:57,560 Speaker 1: which often include concerts, museum exhibitions, movie screenings, and of course, 201 00:12:57,880 --> 00:13:01,160 Speaker 1: bike rides. In recent years, there has also been renewed 202 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:04,760 Speaker 1: interest in the clinical uses of LSD. While there's still 203 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:07,679 Speaker 1: plenty of red tapes surrounding the drug, there's hope that 204 00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,200 Speaker 1: it may become a potential treatment for many of the 205 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:16,440 Speaker 1: same conditions Hoffman originally outlined, including depression, PTSD, anxiety, and 206 00:13:16,480 --> 00:13:20,440 Speaker 1: drug addiction. As for the father of LSD, he died 207 00:13:20,480 --> 00:13:23,319 Speaker 1: of a heart attack at his home in Basel, Switzerland, 208 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:26,040 Speaker 1: in two thousand and eight. He had continued to use 209 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:29,680 Speaker 1: LSD in his private life for decades, evidently without a 210 00:13:29,720 --> 00:13:32,200 Speaker 1: negative effect on his health, as he lived to the 211 00:13:32,280 --> 00:13:35,679 Speaker 1: ripe old age of one hundred and two. His acid 212 00:13:35,760 --> 00:13:38,920 Speaker 1: days were behind him by then, but not by much. 213 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:42,280 Speaker 1: According to Hoffmann, he used the drug he discovered for 214 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:45,840 Speaker 1: the last time at the age of ninety seven. No 215 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:48,640 Speaker 1: word on whether he went for a bike ride that time, 216 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:51,439 Speaker 1: although in his head it probably felt like he did. 217 00:13:52,760 --> 00:13:56,240 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Lucier and hopefully you now know a little 218 00:13:56,280 --> 00:13:59,679 Speaker 1: more about history today than you did yesterday. If you 219 00:13:59,760 --> 00:14:04,079 Speaker 1: have second and you're so inclined, consider following us on Twitter, Facebook, 220 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:08,720 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show. You can also rate 221 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:11,320 Speaker 1: and review the show on Apple Podcasts, or you can 222 00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:14,400 Speaker 1: get in touch directly by writing to This Day at 223 00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:18,400 Speaker 1: iHeartMedia dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays and Ben Hackett 224 00:14:18,400 --> 00:14:21,120 Speaker 1: for producing the show, and thank you for listening. I'll 225 00:14:21,120 --> 00:14:24,280 Speaker 1: see you back here again tomorrow for another day in 226 00:14:24,520 --> 00:14:29,640 Speaker 1: History class.